ScottSpec

Just now, Jay Huh said:

Wow! You have quite an operation! Do you have a website? I'd like to check out your business if you don't mind that is

We have several websites.  Maybe a bit of an identity crisis.

 http://www.scottsautospec.com/ 

http://www.autorepairrockville.com/ 

http://volvorepairrockvillemd.com/

http://bmwrepairrockville.com/

Scott

I put license plate frames on all my customer's cars (with their permission) years ago.  I am not aware of any new customer coming in as a result.  I imagine bumper stickers would stand out more, but not sure how much.  We have 5 loaner cars with very obvious advertising for our shop and the fact that we have free loaner cars across the top of the rear glass.  They have all been on the road since last August.  We have not had a single customer come in because of that; and I have to believe seeing free loaner car is more of a motivator that just our info on a bumper sticker.  

Scott  

#1.  It is fun and keeps your interest.  #2. Stirs up negative feelings with the rejected sticker and the hassles of dealing with it.

Scott

We use a bulk tank for 5-30 conventional. This is our most commonly sold oil. For all other weights and synthetics, we use the boxes. I hate dealing with all the plastic bottles, both the time to use them and the disposal. Most suppliers will give you the rack and jugs. My jugs have lids so we have never had a need to clean them out.

Scott

My post was added multiple time so this is a delete.

My post was added multiple time so this is a delete.

I would proceed with caution. I started in 1989 as a Volvo specialist. It was great for many years for most of the reasons you stated, you can make more on parts because you can usually lower your purchase cost, you don't need to invest as much in equipment or information systems, less time is usually wasted on diagnostics, your techs can usually turn out a lot more hours doing the same jobs over and over again, and you can increase your turn around time. You also become know as the experts which can help reduce marketing costs and help with SEO. But for us, things started to change in the mid 2000's. Volvo's became more and more reliable and routine maintenance was reduced considerably. Volvo's popularity and sales also started to slow and the new class of Volvo owner's did not seem to understand the need for regular maintenance. They were buying Volvo's because they heard "Volvo's last forever" and were usually shocked when problems arose after driving for 70-100,000 miles without doing more than a few oil changes. When I say few oil changes, 15,000 intervals were not uncommon. By 2010, we were starting to lose money. Along with many other Volvo specialist, we then realized that we had to make the transition to a General Repair Facility or at least other vehicles if we wanted to survive. One guy was a Volvo/Saab specialist. On top of having to deal with the slowing Volvo business, he had to deal with the loss of Saab. Our business is still about 60% Volvo, the rest is General repair. It has taken us until last year to start making money again. Another fellow Volvo specialist went through a similar situation. He has a large operation, >10 technicians. He got into General Repair but one make in particular took off and is now about 60% of his business and probably responsible for most of his profits. He talks about how he would love to specialize in that one make but after what happened with Volvo, he said he would never put all his eggs in one basket again.

You say there are a lot of registered Subaru owners. As we first started our transition from Volvo Specialists, we thought it would be best to keep some focus so we chose Toyota/Lexus because there are so many around here and a lot of our customers were buying them as they could no longer afford them. This never got much traction. We did start bringing them in but soon realized Toyota was a very different class of car. Most Toyota owners are economy minded and are reluctant to spend a lot of money repairing them. Toyota's tend to require less repairs, and unlike Volvo's a most European cars, you can take a Toyota to just about any non-specialists.

If you are thinking to yourself that you can always get the customers back if you need to, you may find it harder than you think. Over the years we sent many non-Volvo's to other shops. I image like us, you would never refer a customers to another shop unless you believed they were going to get treated well. Once that customers starts going to the other shop and is treated well, given good service, and builds a relationship with them, why would they come back to you. To this day, we see a lot of our old customers in the parking lot when they take there car to the shop next door or the one across the parking lot that we recommended them to. These were long time customers that we built personal relationships with.

My suggestion would be to focus on growing the Subaru business and leave the other part alone. If the Subaru side starts doing well, stop promoting the General Repair side. If you get busy enough, you can stop taking on new non-Subaru customers. We now call ourselves Volvo Specialists and General Automotive Repair.

Scott

We've created this section here for you to post your shop website. This is a great way to get some more exposure, relative backlinks for search engines, and feedback from your peers.

 

Please post relevent automotive shop websites only. Any posts including non automotive shop websites will be moderated and removed.

 

Thank you.

 

Alex,

I think this a good topic / idea as we might all benefit from feedback, however I don't think it will help with backlinks as only logged in users can see them.

Scott

We have 2 sites. One for our Volvo Service http://www.4volvoservice.com and the other for our general repair http://www.scottsautospec.com/ . Both ready for some updating. Any feedback would be appreciated.

Scott

I am currently in the process of setting up some loaner vehicles. I have resisted it for a long time because of the cost and liability, but I now believe it is something we almost need to do. I thought I would share some of what I have learned / experienced so far. To clarify, our cars are not yet on the road. I think the first thing we all worry about is the liability. What if someone gets into an accident and you get sued. For starters, all of us in this business run the risk of being sued everyday. If something goes wrong after we repair a customers car, we can be sued. We all manage that risk with procedures and insurance. If you have loaner cars for your customers, they can essentially be owned 2 ways. By your company, or you can set up another company.

I have chosen to register and insure them as part of my company for several reasons. First, I don't believe that setting up a separate company will provide you with much protection. Legally a company must be created to for profit, not as a means to protect assets. I believe any good lawyer would successfully argue that the purpose of your "loaner car company is to protect your business, not to generate profits. If they are not successful with that argument, they will still say you are responsible because you provided the car. Then there is the cost of insurance as well as the setup and maintenance costs of the "loaner car company". The quotes I have gotten for insurance on loaner cars is $1000 when they are added onto my company policy and $3000 when set up as a rental car for $2,000,000 worth of liability.

So here is the way I see it. If something happens, the customer and their insurance will be first. Then the 2M liability policy on the car, then the 1M shop liability coverage, and I am looking at adding a 1M umbrella policy for a few hundred dollars more a year. I don't see many people winning all that, and then still coming after the assets of my company.

Scott

We are a Bosch Service Center and are in the process of becoming a NAPA service center. Bosch offers a lot, but we probably don't take advantage of it as much as we could. We do offer financing to our customers through Bosch and my techs have been using the online seminars for training. There is no down side to become a Bosch Service Center as the is no cost to you.

Scott

We have been RepairPal Certified for about 2 years now. I've been pretty happy with the program. We have gotten customers through both their website and the towing program. I heard complaints from other shop owners about the RepairPal pricing tool, but I have found that there tool gives very realistic pricing. So when customers do come through the site, price is not usually an issue since they are already informed. The only downside is a lot of price shopper phone calls. While I believe RepairPal pricing is fair, by its nature, it will attract price shoppers.

When I hear "but it comes with a Lifetime Warranty". I always respond with, "Good thing because you are going to need it"

We replace the seal on just about every car we work on and charge as a line item on the invoice.

Scott Folley

Scott's Automotive Specialties

www.scottsautospec.com

I can't answer your question specifically, but we have recently begun several marketing programs. I looking at advertising as an investment. While impressions, leads, clicks, calls, conversions, etc. are nice metrics to talk about, the real measure is ROI like the above posts states. How much am I making from my investment in advertising is the question to ask. This however can be very difficult to calculate. Do you look at the short or long term value of the customer? What about customers referred by them? Right now I am looking at what that customer spends over a 3 year period plus what any of their referrals spend over a 3 year period.

Scott

I am a ASE certified master tech with my L1, master emission repair license , and state inspection license. I have worked at a Branded gas station for the last 24 years, I am looking for information on how to get started in my own shop. I wanted some input on how to do this if to get a service station or a repair shop . Also a realistic view of what it would cost to get started . If anyone could steer me in the right direction I would be appreciated . Besides obtaining a shop my other worry would be finding good Mechanics, I am a person that believes the work has to be done top notch , I can't stand people that guess or throw parts at cars nor people that gouge or rip customers off like selling 4 oxygen sensors on a car. Never happens, it is like buying 4 tv's at the same time what are the chances that all 4 die at once? anyway any help would be appreciated.

 

thanks,

S.M.

Selling someone 4 oxygen sensors is not necessarily ripping them off. In fact one of the models we work on if all 4 sensors are not done at the same time, the check engine light will come back on in a few miles. The last bosch article I read on the subject stated oxygen sensor life was 60,000 miles. If a vehicle has over 100,000 miles and you don't suggest 4 oxygen sensors, I think you are doing them a dis-service. Suggesting them and explaining why, is different than telling them they must replace them.

Scott

I am a ASE certified master tech with my L1, master emission repair license , and state inspection license. I have worked at a Branded gas station for the last 24 years, I am looking for information on how to get started in my own shop. I wanted some input on how to do this if to get a service station or a repair shop . Also a realistic view of what it would cost to get started . If anyone could steer me in the right direction I would be appreciated . Besides obtaining a shop my other worry would be finding good Mechanics, I am a person that believes the work has to be done top notch , I can't stand people that guess or throw parts at cars nor people that gouge or rip customers off like selling 4 oxygen sensors on a car. Never happens, it is like buying 4 tv's at the same time what are the chances that all 4 die at once? anyway any help would be appreciated.

 

thanks,

S.M.

Selling someone 4 oxygen sensors is not necessarily ripping them off. In fact one of the models we work on if all 4 sensors are not done at the same time, the check engine light will come back on in a few miles. The last bosch article I read on the subject stated oxygen sensor life was 60,000 miles. If a vehicle has over 100,000 miles and you don't suggest 4 oxygen sensors, I think you are doing them a dis-service. Suggesting them and explaining why, is different than telling them they must replace them.

Scott

We explain how we added the dye and to return if the AC stops cooling. Like the post above, there is no point in the customer returning if the AC is functioning ok.

Scott

I have worked at a station for the last 24 years. The labor rate started at 38.50 an hour when I started , I have been trying to get the owner to up his rate since it has been at 90.00 for the last 7 years. I have been telling him that the cost of living has gone up every year and our pay has stayed the same so we are behind as far as pay. I am in Maryland and I am pretty sure the labor rate around here is much more like 100+ . That is one reason I am really thinking about starting my own repair shop , people will pay for honest and quality work with out batting an eye. Look at the price of gas it goes up , yes people may complain , but do they stop buying it?? No . Is anyone from the Maryland area? if so what are your rates?

I don't know what part of Maryland you are in but we just went to $100 after being at $95 for over 5 years and we are in the most affluent area of Maryland just outside of Washington DC. I know of only one other independent that is $100 or more. I'm with M-Spec. I'm moving to Florida.

Scott

I pay all my employees a salary plus a percentage of the total sales of the business. This gives them stability, incentive to produce, to work as a team and to do quality work. It has been a little painful for me the last few years as sales have dropped, but over the last 25 years I have not had many employees quit and I have heard many times about the great attitudes of my employees and how well they all work together. Like we tell our customers, quality is not cheap.

Scott

If you are a small shop and just want something simple and free to use, I have created a web app that is free to use. It is pretty basic, but with a few powerful features. It is web based so you can use it anywhere on as many devices as you choose. You can email customers sending them estimates, invoices, pictures or other documents. I is a little pet project of mine. There are about 80 shops using it including several that are doing more than 500k a year. Support is limited to when I can get to your email. If you want to check it out go to www.smotgo.com and use the demo credentials. There is also more info at www.smotgoinfo.com. You can also email me if you have questions info@smotgo,com.

Scott

We get these from time to time. We just ask them if they are hiring us to install the parts or fix the problem. If they want to hire us to install the parts, then we let them know that all we guarantee is that the part is installed correctly. This usually leads to a longer conversation about a real diagnoses and quite often they end up having it done properly. For those that don't, we make money installing the part(s) and quite often more afterwards to diagnose and repair it correctly. You just have to make it work for you.

I've been doing this for 26 years. For the first 20, it was pretty predictable. Jan-Mar really depended on the weather. The colder is was the busier we were. The end of March and into April would be slow till after tax time. I have always dealt with a wealthier / established clientele, so I never really understood that one. As soon as the weather warmed up we were slammed till August when everyone went away on vacation. We would have a lot of missed appointments in September until everyone adjusted to the their kids new school schedules. As soon as the weather got cold, we would get slammed again.

The last 6 years, there has been no rhyme, reason, or pattern. Some of our slower months in the past, have become better months recently. A roller coaster it has been for some time.

Scott

Update on my experience with Autel. After many months of unreturned calls and emails, I finally decided to file a law suit against them. I sent them an email letting them know my plans, and within a few hours a rep was on the phone with me setting up the return process. I sent it back and they gave me a full credit.

Scott

I believe it about the current generation but as new technology comes in to play the newer generations will succumb to it.

 

My great grandma didn't understand the purpose of a cell phone.

Grandma has a flip phone but doesn't understand texting.

mom has a smart phone and texts but doesn't navigate it that well and doesn't use many of the features.

I use all of the features of my smart phone, and text, email, and app things to death.

 

My kids (if and when I have any) will most likely have an implant and think that there is nothing wrong with it.

I get your point about the adaptation of technology. I'm not sure the progression of the acceptance of the cell phone is the best analogy, but I'll go with it. Right now you are in complete control of your cell phone. Cell phones give everyone freedom and empowerment. If you had a choice between your current cell phone and one that decides who and when to call, what apps you could use, or how fast they can operate, which would you choose? Even as great as cell phone technology is today, calls are frequently dropped, you have to walk around a room to get a signal or maybe outside. How often do you still here "let me call you back on a landline". I have to reboot my phone every so often. Unintended calls are so popular that they have their own term "butt dial". And the number one cause of distracted driving accidents of course, is cell phones. If my cell phone fails in an unpredictable way, it is not going to cause me to veer off the road into a tree. I don't even trust the GPS on my phone to get me to the right place every time. We accept all the shortcomings of cell phone technology because there is no other choice and no one gets hurt if their cell phone malfunctions. Unless of course the text we intended to go to our girlfriend actually goes to our wife.

A few other questions I just wondered about self driving cars. Will they be able to detect a failing master cylinder? What about the vibration of a wheel whose lug nuts are coming loose after someone forgot to tighten them? Or, the flap, flap, flap of a failing tire before it flies apart. How will they deal with the snow, and what about the patch of ice in the road up ahead. How will they detect that? What about an obstruction in the road, will it come to a stop and sit there until the obstruction is moved? How does it interpret the police officer tell it to turn around or continue on the opposite side of the road because there is an accident ahead? The list goes on and on and it changes everyday.